The Whimsical Woman

​The most commonly asked question I get regarding my upcoming Pacific Crest Trail thru-hike is, “How are you physically preparing?” To answer, I always stare deeply into their eyes, let a few moments of silence pass us by, maybe even grab their hand, then respond ever-so-passionately, “Binge eating.” And then I wink while blowing a kiss. Ok, maybe I don’t answer that dramatically, but the truth is that I am not really…

Backpacking is such a weird concept if you think about it. You spend a bunch of money to basically become homeless for a chunk of time. You don’t (typically) get to shower, use a toilet, or sometimes even eat hot food. You sleep on the ground, you exert yourself to the point of exhaustion each day, you have no contact with “the outside world”, you have all sorts of bugs and insects…

Well, I did it again friends! That’s right. Another disastrous trip, back-to-back. I would like to note that none of this is made up. My life may seem like a joke, but it’s not. It’s all definitely real. Some friends and I were backpacking Tuck and Robin Lakes. Now what can go wrong in a place as beautiful as this? This trip was one of my friend’s first backpacking trips…

I have done my fair share of backpacking over this past year and have learned A LOT since my very first overnight trip. Every experience has been an absolute blast, that I just can’t seem to get enough. That is, until this past weekend at Ancient Lakes in Eastern Washington. Now, Ancient Lakes is a very easy trail, which is what makes this whole situation even more ironic. There’s hardly…